Aeroflot Flight 1491

Aeroflot

Company type	Airline
Industry	Aviation
Founded	1923 (1923)
Headquarters	Moscow , Soviet Union
Products	Passenger and cargo air transport
Parent	Soviet government

Not to be confused with Aeroflot Flight 1492.

Aeroflot Flight 1491 was a domestic passenger service operating between Moscow-Vnukovo and Kharkiv International Airport that tragically ended on 18 May 1972 during its approach to Kharkiv. The incident resulted in the loss of all 122 individuals on board, including passengers and crew, aboard an Antonov An-10 aircraft.

Aircraft

The aircraft involved, an Antonov An-10A bearing registration CCCP-11215, was produced at the Voronezh Aircraft Production Association on 3 February 1961. It was handed over to Aeroflot’s Kharkiv division shortly after, on 7 February 1961. Prior to the accident, this plane had completed 11,105 flight cycles and logged a total of 15,483 flight hours.

Crew and passengers

The flight was operated by personnel from the 87th Flight Squadron of the Kharkiv United Squadron. Commanding the flight was Captain Vladimir Vasiltsov; First Officer Andrei Burkovskii, navigator Aleksandr Grishko, flight engineer Vladimir Shchokin, and radio operator Konstantin Peresechanskii also staffed the cockpit.

Among the 115 passengers were notable individuals such as:

• Viktor Chistyakov, a pop artist and parodist
• Nina Aleksandrovna, a journalist affiliated with Izvestia newspaper
• Boris Ryshkovsky, spouse of actress Victoria Lepko
• Vladimir Zaimov, a mathematician from Bulgaria
• Konstantin Andreevich Mokichev, Doctor of Law and First Deputy Prosecutor General of the USSR; previously Rector of the All-Union Correspondence Law Institute (VYuZI) from 1949 to 1952
• A delegation representing the Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation from the German Democratic Republic

Additionally, Ivan Medvedyuk from the Ministry of Internal Affairs escort was also on board.

Synopsis

Flight 1491 departed from Moscow-Vnukovo Airport at 10:39, bound for Kharkiv. The journey was conducted under clear and favorable weather conditions. At 11:44, while approaching Kharkiv, air traffic control instructed the pilots to descend to 1,500 m (4,900 ft)—this was the final communication received from the aircraft. When ATC attempted to contact the crew again at 11:51, there was no reply. By 11:53, the plane vanished from radar detection.

During the descent from 4,500 m (14,800 ft) down to 1,500 m (4,900 ft), at an altitude of approximately 1,700 m (5,600 ft), the airplane disintegrated mid-flight and crashed. The debris was located roughly 24 km (15 mi) away from Kharkiv Airport in the Olkhovaya Balka forest. An engine and a wing were discovered separated from the fuselage, which itself was found between Borshchevaya and Russkaya Lozovaya in the Dergachevsky district of Kharkiv region. Unfortunately, all 122 passengers and crew perished.

The initial individual to arrive at the crash site was a forester who reported that the victims’ remains were severely fragmented, with only an infant’s body found intact.

A special commission was formed to probe into the accident. Commission member Friedlander recounted their observations at the scene: Template:Blockquote

Investigation

The investigative commission determined that the accident resulted from an in-flight failure of the wing’s center section, triggered by a breakdown in the lower panel caused by fatigue cracks developing in both stringers and skin.

Their findings indicated that the critical failure occurred just one minute before structural breakup. A crack initiated within the fatigue-prone area between the 6th and 7th stringers on the lower center panel expanded bidirectionally toward the spars. This led to failure of the zero rib connecting those stringers to the riveted panel, causing both wings to fold upwards.

From their report: Template:Blockquote

Aftermath

Pravda covered the crash of Flight 1491 soon after the incident occurred. At that period, it was uncommon for Soviet media to report on domestic aviation accidents.

This tragedy was not the initial An-10 disaster; other incidents linked to design defects had also taken place. For example, Aeroflot Flight 1969 crashed due to wing detachment, and at Kurumoch Airport, an An-10 lost a wing while being towed.

Once the investigation concluded, authorities decided to ground the entire fleet of An-10 and An-10A aircraft. Subsequently, Aeroflot mandated the retirement of these models, except for a limited number with low flight hours. After thorough inspections, these few were reassigned to transport divisions under the Ministry of Aviation for cargo operations. One An-10 stationed at the Wittstock training facility in East Germany was repurposed as a target. Additionally, eleven other planes were placed in various Soviet locations serving different functions such as aviation memorials, shooting ranges, and children’s cafés. The only remaining An-10 is preserved at the Central Air Force Museum in Monino.

Memorials

The crew members along with unidentified victims were interred at Kharkiv’s 5th city cemetery, located near Kharkiv Airport.

At the primary crash location near the fuselage remains, a monument once stood bearing the inscription: "You are forever alive in our hearts." Over time, this memorial vanished; today, only a fragment of reinforcement remains with an iron wreath hanging on it.

See also

• Aeroflot accidents and incidents in the 1970s
• Aeroflot Flight 1969

External links

• Aeroflot Flight 1491 at planecrashinfo.com
• Aeroflot Flight 1491 at airdisaster.ru